One of my favorite condensed summarizations of Buddhism - very western and bleak.

Gautama’s seemingly negative and deflating doctrines were intended to bring relief and encouragement. He believed that the root of suffering is desire: the pursuit of goals unattainable because the objects sought are fleeting and unreal. And because the concept of self is an illusion, the more frustrating of all desires is the craving for self-satisfaction and self-exaltation. — World Civilizations, Volume 1

There is no fundamental unit of existence, so to grasp at self is to grasp at an arbitrary series of restrictive, ultimately deluded stories. Freedom from suffering comes from rejecting self-grasping in favor of uncondtioned awareness.

These are all great inputs. I finally re-listened to a teaching I heard a few years ago by Ken Mccleod. This description of Buddhism I think works best, for me and for explaining to others. He describes Buddhism as a:

"set of tools to wake up to, or experience things as they really are"

and

"to become an ongoing response to the pain and suffering of the world."

"Seek truth in meditation, not moldy books. Look in the sky to find the moon, not in the pond." - Persian proverb

“Not till your thoughts cease all their branching here and there, not till you abandon all thoughts of seeking for something, not till your mind is motionless as wood or stone, will you be on the right road to the Gate.”